And they ask me why I home schooled ... ! - Page 2

[Imakcerka]

The point I was trying to make was that either path can be bad and good.  If you grew up in the HS culture it might be easier to understand.  I expected more from us and I feel like some of us didn't reach our potential.  Not because we couldn't but because the people that were supposed to help us get there didn't really do what they started out to do.  Or maybe they thought they did enough.  As an HS kid your self esteem takes a dive when you figure out you're pretty far behind in science and Math.  Feeling stupid sucks.  I do get annoyed when my mother tries to take credit for how I have turned out.  A great career in IT and I make enough to support my kids and husband.  I wish she could have understood the frustration and embarrassment I felt and how hard I had to work to get here.  I got here inspite of my mom. 
 

If you're truly committed as a parent then there should be no worries.  Not all parents are committed.  That's the problem.

Originally Posted by kathymuggle 

I get emails from my adult cousin who went to school and can barely write. 

At the end of the day I think engaged parents in a resource rich environment increase a child's likelihood of success - no matter the childhood education path taken.

Schools vary.  Some are good, and some are horrible.  Some kids and families are a better fit for school or homeschooling than other.  At the end of the day, I felt homeschool was the best choice for my children in the younger grades for a variety of reason (and some of them ideological) so that is what we did.  I don't think either choice is automatically awful, though.  

[philomom]

Originally Posted by Imakcerka 

  As an HS kid your self esteem takes a dive when you figure out you're pretty far behind in science and Math.  Feeling stupid sucks. 

I know, I want to always think that homeschooled kids will do better.. but a lot of the ones I know don't.

We have one kid on our block now who mostly plays video games. I try to encourage him and his mom to take in some of the cool educational stuff around town.. but they are just too inclined to sit around.

[briansmama]

Originally Posted by hippiemombian 

I currently home school my daughter. She spent a year and a half in public school and because we were moving around a lot I decided it would be best for her to stay home. Now I honestly don't think I would ever send her back. Anyway, I think this quote is funny and just goes to show that even rigorous academics can't make you do something "noble." I was always a very smart child, in high school I was in the honors programs and had a very high GPA. I enjoyed learning, but I hated school. After several attempts at college I decided that it probably wasn't for me and I am okay with that. What I found humorous and it just reaffirms that I am making the right decision is even after graduating with a high GPA and all of my honors classes I still needed to take remedial classes in math. So I figure if I bomb at this homeschooling thing and my child isn't an "honors" student, that she won't be any worse off than the other students that went to a "proper" school and got a "quality" education, kids like me. Honestly, that is okay with me. If my child is going to go to Harvard then she's going to go. If she doesn't, that is fine too. She can be a cashier or a hairdresser, as long as she's happy and healthy. I don't care what she does. Her father is a truck driver, hes a smart man, he just enjoys his job. Sure he could be something "grand" but hes happy with his life and his job. I think children will be who they are meant to be and in the end they will all be okay.

Hippiemombian, I completely agree and also want to support my dc in whatever they decide to do later in life if it keeps them healthy, happy, and self-suffiicient. I'm raising my dc to think for themselves, and I feel that by exposing them to a liberal arts education and lots of real-world careers and needed work in our day to day outings that they will find something they actually want to do.

To me, that's a great gift to give a child. Too many parents we know want their kids to get into a certain college or choose a certain career path, and I just don't want to put that kind of pressure on my kids. I have high expectations for their lives (healthy, happy, and self-sufficient) but how they get there is for them to decide.

[Storm Bride]

For those who think that homeschooled kids should "do better", I only have one question. What does "doing better" mean to you?

[miriam]

.  

Edited by miriam - 5/28/12 at 9:04pm